Sofia and Jacob join me for a chat about the COVID-19 crisis, and how we will train, wipe our asses and survive without sweet potato. Seriously though there is some actual information here if you sift through the poo jokes and irrelevant banter. Personally I feel we could all use a bit of a laugh so here's 50 minutes worth of us sitting close together before that was against the law.  00:00 Introducing Sof (again) and Jacob as the epic weightlifters and humans they are, and how we are all coping with the lack of sweet potatoes and toilet paper in the current COVID-19 crisis. 03:00 Intense debate about potatoes which lasts longer than it should TBH. No conclusion is reached. 05:30 Some actual statistics about the virus and what we should all probably know about how it is contracted and spread. 09:30 The economic domino effect on our population and the few among us acting like complete fuckheads. 15:00 Weightlifting and how this crisis will effect our sport. 20:00 How to keep your training space safe and sanitised, how to reduce the risk to gym members and what the rapidly changing policies mean for your training. 30:00 Why weightlifters will be the first to go and how challenging it is to bulk when the supermarket shelves are empty. Please send Jacob food. 35:00 Jacob's goals: Commonwealth Games, getting massive, and finally seeing Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. 40:00 Body parts we value most in a person (unrelatedly). 45:00 Back to COVID-19 which regresses into some ridiculousness so we wisely end the episode wishing all our listeners health and wellbeing in this trying time. 

Nicole Abramowitz is certainly a qualified psychologist in terms of life experience, despite being a few months off having the piece of paper to prove it. Her story of family trauma lead her to a pursuit devoted to better understanding how the human mind works and has given her the firm belief that the biggest tragedy in life is not learning from the tragedy itself. 

This episode may be triggering and I would advise those experiencing any past trauma similar to Nicole's to speak to a trained professional, and just in general because psychology is awesome. 

00:00 How 2020 is a fucker so far and why it’s OK to be one of the people being strong for others, plus how I met Nicole.

04:00 Riding the sometimes shit wave that is life and the benefits of adversity. 

06:00 Why people are so fucked up, the societal regressions we are experiencing that contribute to our collective poor mental health. 

12:00 Nicole shares her story. (This may be triggering and contains themes of suicide and domestic abuse.)

18:00 Accepting that you can’t help anyone anymore than they can help themselves. The difficulty in accepting and providing support and the importance of autonomy and empowerment.

21:00 Toxic relationships and the addiction pathway, why we are hooked on playing the hero.

27:00 Grief and loss, death and breakups and the similarities in coping mechanisms for trauma.

35:00 There's no 'right' decision, you make a decision and you make it work. The importance of owning this is in a life of infinite possibilities. 

42:00 The importance of values. 

52:00 Takeaway strategies when supporting a loved one - accepting that it's not about you and why we find this so fucking hard. 

60:00 Why adaption is the most important trait in survival. 

64:00 Inner contentment and not being motivated by external reward.

68:00 Gratitude, perspective and acceptance...not letting your struggles define you.

70:00 The joy of living your mundane life and why being bored kinda rules. 

Mindgold power couple Tom and Siobhan join the show together to talk about all things RELATIONSHIP. Whether you're swiping right or you and your partner spend Friday nights cleaning your kitchenware together, we probably have something to say that will resonate with you. If not, you'll at least get a laugh. 

05:00 Relationship Day : the importance of making time for your partner, 

09:30 Putting in the work and learning lessons from both negative and positive experiences in relationships.

14:00 Defining what it is you are looking for in a relationship and finding someone who shares your values and wants to grow with you.

19:00 #badwomen (enough said)

25:00 The importance of having difficult conversation.

30:00 Baggage is inevitable. Owning your shit and being honest about it, and being aware of your partner's triggers as well as your own.

35:00 Tinder, ghosting, and an idea for a potential app that will prevent dickhead behaviour.

41:00 Focus on the marriage, not the wedding.

46:00 Why being in a relationship IS working on yourself. 

57:00 Fertility awareness (don't freak out guys).

1:03 Attachment theory and how our cognitive development affects our adult relationships.

1:09 Recognising you and your approach to dating and finding a partner needs to change.

1:18 Some actual, serious advice: sharing a vision, physiological relaxation (this isn't sex, sorry) and love languages.